Walt Whitman was a man of stunning contradictions. The publication of "Song of Myself" transformed him from an obscure poet into the voice of a nation. But Leaves of Grass, published in 1855, shocked the literary world with its avant-garde style and unabashed portrayal of the self. Committed to the full expression of his physical and intellectual lives, Whitman, ironically, spent much of his life masking his true sexuality behind an ambiguous cloak of respectability. Walt Whitman: A Gay Life is the first biography to illuminate the vital connection between Whitman's life as a homosexual and his legacy as a landmark literary artist. Here is the story of his encounter with the young Oscar Wilde, one of the most intriguing meetings of minds in literary history. Here, too, are the unadorned details about Whitman's relationship with Peter Doyle, his longtime companion, as well as the explicit poems Whitman suppressed from later editions of his published work.

Though Walt Whitman's poetry is known for its unabashed physicality and sexual energy, few biographers have directly confronted the impact of Whitman's sexuality and his cherished fraternal relationships on his art. Gary Schmidgall's fresh, insightful readings and innovative biographical technique illuminate the vital connection between Whitman's life as a homosexual and his legacy as a landmark literary artist.Through careful examination of contemporary sources and Whitman's own writing, including his letters and personal journals, Schmidgall explores Whitman as artist, lover, and friend. What emerges is a fascinating portrait of a man of deeply sexual nature, ardently pursuing the objects of his desire in erotic encounters and love affairs that fueled his creative energy and inspired his seminal literary achievements. Candid, unapologetic, and deeply revealing, "Walt Whitman: A Gay Life" enriches our understanding of the father of American poetry.

A biography of Walt Whitman, composed of six thematically linked essays that explore various aspects of the poet's life, focusing primarily on his homosexuality and the ways in which Whitman revealed his sexual preference through his writing.